Takeru knew this was working. It was bringing all the energy in her, making her concentrate on one aim, and, eventually she would throw her attack. From that point it would all be very easy. It was like breathing for the first time for a baby, once you do it once, you know how to do it forever. Mizumi wanted to pounce forward, but in her constant training all she did was extend both her hands towards Takeru. The boy leapt aside as a blast of fire flew like a comet towards him, igniting the dry bush behind him.
"Fire!" Takeru snapped, picking up a fallen branch and hitting the burning bush desperately.
"I did it..." Mizumi murmurred absently, staring at her hand as if in a haze.
"I don't think this is a good place to practice your attack." Takeru commented once he was sure the fire had been extinguished.
"I did it!" a loud, excited shrill filled Takeru's ears.
Mizumi, ignoring all the manners she had been taught, pounced on the boy throwing both of them to the ground. All the while, the woman would scream how she had managed it, while Takeru would embrace her excitedly, while beaming at her and praising her triumph. It was then that the two realized their awkward position. Takeru smiled shyly while a slight red tint coloured his cheeks, and Mizumi smiled foolishly.
"I did it." She repeated in a child like way.
"I think we should celebrate it. I'll prepare a party, just come to the Hideout tonight." Takeru said smiling gently at Mizumi, while pushing her aside and helping her on her feet.
"All right." Mizumi said with a nod, althought she was really excited about all the latter events.
"See you later." Takeru said, kissing her forehead and running away.
Mizumi was dumbfounded. Sure Takeru had always been kind to her, but he had never showed any kind of affection, not even friendship although he was a person in which Mizumi was learning to trust. Not like he pushed her away, but Takeru was almost acting the role of mentor, or father. While he looked twenty something, and acted like that most of the time, he was also conscious of his true age, and tried to act like it as well. The child in him was too strong to be replaced by the adult that might come in a far away future.
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The screen of an old, rather arcaic computer, flashed a bright white for a few seconds. Mizumi's figure appeared as soon as the brightness faded. The black eyes shone brightly, her face lit with a light of excitement, and her hands covered a gaping mouth as Mizumi restrained a gasp. There was a general roar, a bellow of congratulations, and a crowd of people surounding her with bright smiles and a glimmer of aceptation in their faces. Mizumi saw several colourful balloons bouncing here and there. The haze of a light smoke that was itching and annoying floated in the air. Someone asked what was being celebrated, while several people blew whistles at the girl.
"Thank you!" Mizumi gasped shocked, her eyes larger than usually, and humid with excitement.
Sure she had been warned about a party, but the girl had imagined something more personal. Perhaps a dinner with the group, and afterwards a calm coffee with Takeru and Chiyo. Suddenly she was being attacked by an enthusiastic group of Digis, all of which already knew her from her stances during the night.
"Come and have something to drink, what do you like? Beer?" Takato Yagami, a young, seventeen years old Digi, said lifting a glass which clearly contained beer.
"Hum, no thanks, it's too sour for my taste." Mizumi said looking disgustedly at the golden, fresh liquid, crowned with white foam.
"What do you like?" Takato inquired calmly, smiling at the girl.
"Vodka with sprite will be fine." Mizumi said with a bright grin.
"Sure thing!" Takato made a strange, pointing movement with his arm, and vanished into the crowd.
"Let's put some music! Ryu!" a female's voice boomed in the vast room.
"All right, relax Mia." An older male's voice responded.
Takato returned with the glass and offered it to the young woman. Mizumi thanked him and took a zip. It was too strong for her taste but she would never tell Takato, considering that the boy had gone to prepare the drink specially for her. Absently, Mizumi began to sway slightly while taking another, much larger gulp of the drink.
"Are you having fun?" a gentle, familiar voice said next to her.
"I wasn't expecting this! Thanks a lot, Takeru sempai." Mizumi said with bright eyes, staring at the boy happily and gratefully.
"Nah, don't thank me. Thank this people who helped me prepare everything." Takeru motioned his hand in an arch, engloving everyone.
"I sure was not expecting that level of acceptation. I haven't been specially kind to them." Mizumi said shamefully, lowering her head.
"Relax. They understand, they have gone through the same as well. Well, most of them. Takato was a special case." Takeru said with a light laughter, "Ryu was even worse than you. The kid locked himself in his room for a whole month, before he spoke to anyone. Normally he went outside to pick his plate, and walked back inside, in complete silence." At this point, Takeru wore a face of gossip and complice.
"Well, thank you, Mr. Perfect!" Mizumi said punching him playfully on the shoulder, giving him a look of mock hurt.
"Hey, it's true. You haven't been specially easy!" Takeru snapped with a bright smile, "Well, care to dance?" they boy questioned upon hearing a rather slow song.
"Sure!" Mizumi accepted cheerfully, leaving her glass on a nearby table.
Takeru took a gentle grip on her hand and dragged her deeper into the crowd, where there was so many people privacy was much greater. The boy stopped and pulled Mizumi towards him, placing her arms around his neck, only to placed his hands over her waist afterwards. The two began swaying slowly, with the gentle rythm of the music. Various people were dancing as well, one or two couples, and groups of good friends just having a good time.
Takeru's blue eyes were flashing with bright sparkles, glancing at Mizumi's deep blackness. The boy's lips were broken in a vast grin, watching the much aceptation Mizumi was having with the group, and the group was having with Mizumi. The woman was also smiling, but her smile was a much softer, much more gentle one. Cherry lips were glowing like gloss, as a really true smile was, for the first time in sixteen years, being drawn in her lips.
Maybe it was there, or maybe it had been the moment she attacked that poor bush. Whichever second it was, Mizumi changed completely, her growing ended and she finally got over her father's loss to begin a new life. Finally she realized that this life was not that bad, and it was a change to the obsession she had been living for the past years. Right in that moment, Mizumi accepted that her father was gone, and that she had to live her life without forgetting him, but never letting his memory condition her doings.
"Thank you, Takeru." Mizumi said all of a sudden, with such ammount of sincerity it took Takeru off guard.
"For what?" Takeru asked becoming slightly more serious all of a sudden.
"For teaching me that life is a wonderful thing, and showing me that what we are is not a shame, but a pride." Mizumi said, leaning forward and placing a kiss in the boy's cheek.
"I didn't do anything, you found it out by yourself." Takeru said with a slightly more acute voice, yet his blue eyes were friendly and kind as they had always been.
The song ended before they realized about it. Ryu Ishida came over and inquired if he was allowed to dance with the beautiful girl. Takeru accepted with Mizumi's consent, and gave the girl's hand to the handsome, feral boy, his nephew. Takeru retreated to a further corner, where Chiyo was taking a drink, observing everything through her serious, brown eyes.
"Beautiful." Thought Takeru considering Ryu's words, "Sure, I didn't realice, but she is very pretty. It is almost as if she grew all of a sudden, and changed from teenager to adult woman in my arms." The boy thought, slapping himself mentally at how dirty those last words sounded, only to slap himself again and having such a perverted mind.
"I didn't know we did parties every time one of us managed to make his first attack." Chiyo said passively when Takeru sat on an empty chair next to her.
"I know, but she has been having some trouble acepting herself." Takeru responded with a slight groan, remembering the fight he had had with her a month ago.
"Did it work?" Chiyo inquired taking another zip, glancing sideways at Takeru.
"Sure it did. Look at her. She isn't that scared, little girl I found in the Line one month ago, any more. It looks like she has matured, like she has left that worried, troubled child aside and has developed a maturity and adult youth which is eviable. The way her eyes glow this night, and her hair is a little longer, the security in her movements, in her words, in her relation with the rest of the Digis." Takeru said, his eyes glitterig with small, starry blazes.
"Be careful, Tk." Chiyo warned swiftly, dryly, yet staring at him very seriously,
"What? Why?" Takeru was bewildered as her broke his gaze from Mizumi's figure to stare at Chiyo's brown eyes.
"Mizumi is twenty years younger than you are. You could be her father, although you don't look like it." Chiyo comented casually.
"What do you mean?" Takeru inquired alarmed.
"I mean that if Izumi sempai ever knew of this, he wouldn't be the least bit happy." The woman said glancing at Takeru with intensity.
"I don't have any romantic interests on Mizumi!" Takeru protested, staring at Chiyo with disbelief.
"But you do care for her!" Chiyo snapped with emphasis.
"Of course I do! She is Izzy's daughter!" Takeru was starting to get annoyed at Chiyo's insistence, and his attitude was deffensive.
"Are you sure?" Chiyo said very calmly.
At this Takeru was taken off guard. The boy sat very straight when all his muscles tensed. The blue eyes got lost in the crowd, where Mizumi was laughing with a twenty two years old Ryu, chatting with Mia animatedly, playing with Takato. Right now she was being surounded by people her age, and, for a moment, they didn't become Digis, but teenagers enjoying a party. Takeru, on the other hand, felt that churning in his stomach, that sense of protection telling him to do something. Another part of him, his rational mind, told him that once Mizumi had learnt all she had to, she would no longer need him. That last thought hurt him slightly, and the prospect of it was not pleasant so Takeru pushed it aside, and avoided thinking about it.
"After all, sure I'm forty one, because of the year I was born. But in appearance, and in behaviour, I'm just twenty five. I didn't live those fourteen years I lost." Takeru added thoughtfully.
"It's the first time I hear you talking like that!" Chiyo exclaimed really surprised, staring at Takeru as if he had suddenly grown wings.
"It's not exactly easy discovering you have lost fourteen years of your life, and that you've lost the love of your life. I didn't even get a chance, I wasn't given an oportunity. It all just happened, and when I realized, I was still twenty three years old Takeru, while the rest of them had aged!" Takeru snapped desperately, "I lost my youth, Chiyo, I want to get it back!"
"But falling in love with Mizumi is not the solution! Izzy sempai will kill you if he ever finds out!" Chiyo was grave and serious, trying to help Takeru.
"Mizumi doesn't see me like anything else but a father, a mentor, a friend." Takeru said calmly, staring at Mizumi who was saluting him with emphasis.
"That last statement is dangerous." Chiyo said mostly to herself, "Remember, Takeru, she is not Kari. Don't expect that from her because it will destroy you, and you will break her heart." Chiyo was staring at Takeru with a worried expression.
"I know, I know!" Takeru said placing his hands on his head in a sign of frustration, "I really don't like her, Chiyo. Sure, she is pretty and all, and she is changing a lot since she started joining us. And I care for her, I... I do love her, but just the way I love Ryu. Mizumi is like a niece for me." The boy was very serious upon saying this words.
This words said, the boy turned his head and took a gulp of beer before staring at the enjoying group. Mizumi was now playing some odd game with the group, which looked suspiciously like truth, kiss and dare. There was this enormous jealosy blooming like a burning coal inside his heart. Watching those young adults playing and having fun reminded him of how much he had lost. A long time ago he had friends, now he had them but they were stragers. All of them were married, with children, while he was still young a naive. At that moment of his life, Takeru decided to grow up mentally, perhaps to be with them, to feel like he hadn't lost his youth at all. But as time passed, he realized it was all a big lie, and he knew his friends had to do their life, the same he had to make his. Simply, Takeru refused to do that.
"How much I wish I could be playing with them in that moment." Takeru commented casually, making Chiyo stare at him.
"Now who is changing who?" the woman asked, smiling brightly at Takeru.
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AN: Ok, here comes another chapter. In the next chapter we will learn what happened to Takeru, and where is Izzy. Thank you to all my reviewers, in the last chapter I will make a mention to you, like I do in all of my stories. Please, keep reading, I would like to know what you think, and how I could improve the story.